Sail Far Live Free

Nothing is carved in stone yet, but we're very seriously contemplating a 2 or 3 month cruise of northern Lake Michigan and the Mackinac Straits for the summer of 2010.  Such a Great Lakes cruise would be a great way to "test the waters" and see how well our family adapts to living-aboard for an extended period while cruising. At this point in the planning/contemplating stages, the itinerary is wide open, but here's a sample of how the route could look: Grand Haven - White Lake - Pentwater - Ludington - Lake Crossing - Manitowoc - Two Rivers - Door County (multiple ports) - Washington Island - Fayette - Manistique - Beaver Island Archipeligo (Beaver/High/Garden Islands) - St. Helena Island - Mackinac City - Mackinac Island - Harbor Springs - Petoskey - Charlevoix (1+ week layover in Horton Bay) - Grand Traverse Bay (multiple ports) - Leland - Manitou Islands - Frankfort - Portage Lake - Pentwater - White Lake - Grand Haven. Wow...that's a lot o...

Have you ever been out for a lazy sail and wished you could step below for moment to grab a cold drink or perhaps a pair of sunglasses but you couldn't leave the tiller unattended? Davis Marine makes a product they call a " Tiller Tamer " that might help in such a situation. The Tiller Tamer is essentially a clamping device for a tiller control line. It is constructed of durable, hard plastic with stainless steel hardware (screw/hex nut). The Tiller Tamer mounts directly on top of the forward end of the tiller handle. If your tiller is made of anything other than wood, you may need to fabricate mounting hardware or forego the Tiller Tamer all together. The device is mounted via two wood screws. The control line (1/4" diameter provided) is then run from the stern corners of the cockpit to the Tiller Tamer. I personally used jam cleats mounted directly in the fiberglass of the cockpit's stern to anchor the control line. You could also use cam cleats or other me...

Now that the sailboat is out of the water and hibernating until spring, my mind has started to wander and wonder.  One of my passions is adventuring, which seems to have manifested itself in my life in the form of sailing and backpacking.  So I started to wonder, other than adventure, what the common theme is between sailing and backpacking.  Erin & I approaching the summit of Mt. Shasta Both activities require and reward self-sufficiency.  Cruising many miles from land on a sailboat, you have nothing except the wind, the waves and that which you brought oboard.  So it is with backpacking in the wilderness.  All you have is the trails, the trees and that which you have in your pack. Good offshore, bluewater sailors know that they must be competent in many skills.  On a long passage you need to be your own mechanic, navigator, doctor, chef and any number of other professions.  Again, when you're on a long wilderness ...

Just thought I'd make a quick post to share the stormy fall season on the Great Lakes and specifically Lake Michigan. Back on September 28, 2009 we had a major storm come ashore in Grand Haven. The NOAA forecast called for a storm warning with 50kt+ winds and 15-20 foot waves. I don't know the actual wave heights or the wind speeds that day, but I can say that I've never seen more wind or bigger waves on Lake Michigan than I did that day. Check these videos for a better description than words can provide: And lastly, 20 degrees of heel in the slip:

Thursday (Oct. 8) was the day I dread every year...the day the boat is hoisted from the water and put on the hard for half the year. But that's the trade-off for boating in the beautfiul and abundant waters of the Great Lakes. Island Bound was hoisted with North Shore's travel lift, powerwashed and set snuggly on her storage cradle for the long winter hibernation. I went back out on Saturday and winterized the engine (hopefully!), the freshwater system and the head. I also removed the sails and secured all lines and halyards for the winter. All she needs now is her cozy shrink-wrap blanket!

Now that fall has officially arrived here in the Great Lakes, I thought I'd make a quick post to review our first season aboard s/v Island Bound . Incredibly to us, we actually spent significantly more nights aboard IB than we did on Hannabel. On average, we were living on the boat 5 out 7 nights per week. And once again, the dock life and community was amazing. We became close friends with several other boaters on our dock and look forward to continued friendship through the off-season. After several daysails and another run at the 8+8 rally with IB to get to know her a bit, we first headed south back to Eldean Shipyard in Holland for two nights in late June. The trip back was a blast with 25+ kt winds, 6'+ waves and a small craft advisory! Island Bound handled the quartering seas wonderfully and cruised us back to Grand Haven on a fast (6+ kts) broad reach. My mom and dad picked up the girls in Holland and drove them home via automobile just to be safe. In July we head...

Ok, so it's been waaayyyyyyy too long since I've made a blog entry. But hey, I've got a good excuse: We've been busy enjoying our new boat. That's right, we reluctantly sold our beloved Hannabel and moved up to a Caribbean themed Irwin 28 MkIV named "Island Bound". Let me introduce you to our new girl. Here are her vitals... LOA: 28'5" LWL: 23' Beam: 9' Draft: 4'6" Displacement: 7,800 lbs Ballast: 3,000 lbs She's got everything we want in our "next boat". The list includes straight shaft inboard, furling headsail, standing headroom, plumbed head, functional galley, plenty of storage and a bit more speed. So far we've cruised from Muskegon to Grand Haven, raced in the Grand River Sailing Club's 8+8 Rally, cruised to Holland and enjoyed numerous day sails and wonderful nights at the marina. Stay tuned for more frequent updates!

Are we halfway through another winter in the Great Lakes? Close enough by my calendar. As February quickly approaches, spring task lists start to float to the top of a sailor's brain. I'm sitting here in my office daydreaming about oiling teak handrails, applying bottom paint to my hull, cleaning my sails and a dozen other activities that would seem like chores were it any other time of year. The middle of winter has a strange way of making me appreciate summer. To paraphrase John Denver's "Relatively Speaking": The sunshine needs the shadows of the night. Contrast makes it go. And so, summer needs the depth of winter.

Just thought I'd add a quick post to let you know about a video slide show I put together recapping the first year with our Helms 25, Hannabel. You can view the video on YouTube here: YouTube Slideshow of Hannabel's 2008 Season Enjoy!

Now that I've spent a season sailing our Helms 25 and have had time to reflect on the experience since having her hauled out in October, I thought it would be appropriate to post my review of the boat. So here it is... There are many small sailboat builders who had passion, good designs and quality craftsmanship that are no longer in business. The sailboat market can be fickle. Demand ebbs and flows. Niches grow and shrink. Fortunately, many sailboats from years ago survive the market conditions, unlike some of their respective builders. Today we're left with a few choices in the pre-owned market for small, trailerable weekend cruisers. If you're shopping, don't overlook some of the smaller builders like Helms Yachts. Helms Yachts were built in Irmo, South Carolina during the 1970s and early 1980s by Jack Helms. To the best of my knowledge, only 600-800 total boats were built throughout the Helms line. Jack supposedly personally delivered most of the boats. The c...